>> tom: democrats and republicans square off on tax cuts. >> we are ready, this week, to give tax cuts to every american making $250,000 or less. >> why wouldn't we work together to make it clear that all current tax rates will be extended for the next two years? >> susie: when it comes to the economy, the election confrontation has already begun. you're watching "nightly business report" for wednesday, september 8. this is "nightly business report" with susie gharib and tom hudson. "nightly business report" is made possible by:

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>> susie: good evening everyone. president obama rolled out his newest proposal today to re- energize the economy and to boost hiring. tom, the president's strongest pitch was for extending the bush tax cuts for middle class americans making less than $250,000 a year. >> tom: susie, at the same time, president obama said he opposes tax breaks for "millionaires and billionaires." he was speaking at a college campus outside cleveland, ohio, on the turf of one of his toughest republican critics-- house minority leader john boehner. >> susie: the speech set the tone for the president's economic agenda going into the midterm elections, which are just two months away. darren gersh reports. >> reporter: in a campaign-style event, the president today drew the battle lines, casting the election as a choice between the old economic model and the new. >> do we return to the same failed policies that ran our economy into a ditch, or do we

keep moving forward with policies that are slowly pulling us out? >> reporter: too slowly, republicans fired back. on jobs, republican leader john boehner argued the president's policies are the problem, and a few new ideas won't change that. >> until this uncertainty and spending is under control... i don't think these are going to have much impact. >> reporter: what does all this politicking mean for your bottom line? first, on those new proposals from the president: $50 billion in infrastructure spending, an expansion and extension of the research and development tax credits, and 100% expensing of new equipment. the last is most likely to become law, and even that analysts consider a long shot. second, whatever the election outcome, there will be less help coming for the economy. goldman sachs washington analyst alec philips says that's one reason his firm is downgrading their economic forecast for 2011. >> there's really three things happening there. one is the fading effect of the

2009 fiscal stimulus bill. number two is our concern that congress will not extend unemployment benefits past their expiration in november. and number three is the fact that at least some of the tax cuts look likely to expire. on those tax cuts, president obama today vowed to extend the bush tax cuts for the middle class, but let cuts for those making more than $250,000 expire. philips thinks republicans will eventually blink, allowing the president to win this battle. but, conservatives like douglas holtz-eakin disagree. >> i think when push comes to shove, the worst thing for the economy would be to let everything sunset. if the price of avoiding that is an extension, for at least a short while, of the top two rates, he'll do it. >> reporter: financial markets are now expecting the election to result in divided government. in the past that has been good for investors, but with an uncertain economic outlook, some analysts think this time, gridlock could be more of mixed blessing. darren gersh, "nightly business report," washington.

>> tom: here are the stories in tonight's n.b.r. newswheel: stocks closed higher after a successful auction of portuguese government debt eased worries about europe's financial system. at the bell, the dow rose 46 points, the nasdaq added 20 and the s&p 500 up seven points. volume rose slightly from yesterday's pace. 879 million shares traded on the big board. just over two billion on the nasdaq. all three major indices dropped from higher prices after the fed's latest assessment of the economy. the regional fed banks say the recovery cooled through july and august. five reported economic growth at a moderate pace. another five said conditions were mixed or decelerating. and two regions, boston and cleveland, pointed to positive developments. getting fired from h.p. may pay big for mark hurd. he's getting a pretty big pay day from his new employer, oracle. hurd's base salary will be $950,000 a year, according to a securities and exchange commission filing.

he's also eligible for up to a $10 million bonus, plus stock options. that's on top of the severance package hurd got for leaving h.p., valued between $35 and $50 million. >> tom: still ahead, tech takeovers. our "street critique" guest mark watson expects buyouts to continue in the technology sector. coming up, he'll tell us what stocks he's buying. >> susie: b.p. today released its own findings about what went wrong on the deepwater horizon rig.